https://www.lockedondolphins.com/uncategorized/setting-the-edge-miamis-new-additions-up-front/
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Sceeto, LI phinfan, gilv13 and 13 others like this.
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Byron Jones played safety early on in his career, so I wonder how Flores is going to use him. I am guessing most likely it will be at CB, however, his role might expand as he gets more comfortable with the defense. He is pretty athletic. Would he be a good candidate for a single-high safety? Some could argue that we are paying him top CB money, so he is a CB and I agree that point has merit, but so does versatility. Injuries happen, so it would be nice to have some guys who could play CB, Safety, and Slot CB at a high level because the backup might be only able to play one of those positions at a so-so level.
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Ronin, this is so funny. I've been planning on making a thread about Miami's off season acquisitions and calling it Setting The Edge. Ha! That's definitely a big part of what these off season D signings are about. For the longest time, I used to complain so much that we just can't seem to set an edge. We would keep getting gashed on runs and screens, etc. These signings, though they are going to help to generate a better pass rush, setting the edge and getting containment to force stuff inside is key. With the addition of the draft pick Davis to go along with Wilkins to eat that s--t up in the middle is definitely key. Generating a pass rush from up the middle is also key. This will help all around. Ds won't be able to double team Wilkins all the time. Then with the big additions to the secondary and the fact that Flores likes to run many different D formations with many DBs, the possibilities for this D taking a massive step up are huge. Dare I say it, this D has potential to be dominant and what a massive step up from last year that would be. Good stuff, mofos. :up:RoninFin4, Surfs Up 99 and mlb1399 like this.
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I can’t find it but think I saw they were 3rd in the league behind Detroit and New England (similar defenses).
As far as who plays it, I think Bobby McCain’s going to get the first shot. They can disguise some things if they want since Byron Jones has experience there.
Brandon Jones has also done it, but hasn’t looked particularly good at it; he’s better close to the LOS or in the slot.
Personally, I love the idea of this defense. I think there’s some parts, like a true FS, that are missing. I know that the staff loves Bobby McCains’s leadership and communication skills. Hopefully he will get better in year 2 at FS.Surfs Up 99 likes this. -
so your saying that we had the 3rd most single high looks in the league..?
My question to you is specific about playing single high in a defense in general, do you like it or do you think it takes a player out of the play on most plays?, do you think you have to have that security blanket? -
Yes, the tweet I saw said Miami played the third most Cover 1 snaps in the league (single high safety look).
I don't think it necessarily takes a player out of most plays. Look at the pre-snap alignments. The way Miami, New England and Detroit have run it, it's not like the Gregg Williams look where he's got someone 20 yard deep. Miami's usually got that safety anywhere from 8 to 12 yards off the ball.
I think that having Howard and Jones at CB is going to benefit Miami's defense a lot, because you can trust them - if Howard's knee is healthy - to play that coverage and it allows you to keep 8 man boxes regardless of what personnel you have on the field. IIRC, Miami led the league in 7+ DB snaps last year.
Drafting Noah Igbinoghene is also sneaky. Miami probably valued him more than most teams because they play so many DB-heavy looks. Given his abilities to play man coverage both outside and in the slot, it gives Miami the ability to matchup X, Jones and Noah against the opponents receivers however we want. Both Howard and Jones can travel (play both RCB and LCB) and you can line them up in the slot* if needed.
*You're probably not going to want Xavien Howard inside against everyone. For example, he's probably not the guy you want to entrust covering a Julian Edelman out of the slot. But if you have a team like New Orleans who uses Michael Thomas out of the slot to get him clean releases, and you want to match up X on him, go ahead because Jones and Igbinoghene can handle the outside CB duties.KeyFin, Surfs Up 99, Dol-Fan Dupree and 1 other person like this. -
Thanks to everyone who read the article!
Hoping to put something else like that together soon.Surfs Up 99 likes this. -
IMO I'm suspicious that the Dolphins aren't working to make Cover-1 an identity in the way that like the Seahawks made Cover-3 theirs. They're sitting there with a former CB/coverage shell guy as their DC, and I think the defensive orthodoxy is probably going to see Cover-1 as the "best" all-purpose coverage you can run. If you're building a defense and price is no object I think you could certainly see them landing on paying for that.
I could go down a rabbit hole, but IMO the way the Dolphins committed to two relatively expensive high-snap veterans at DE(and then invested further to make sure they've got some solid irons in the fire) seems to suggest they're going to go with the 4-3 Even as a base defense...which in turn kind of requires a safety to drop into the box against certain fits. I kinda wonder if they might just look to do that full time, with a slot corner at FS and just double down on the size component of the defense.